The Long Road Ahead
by The Skinny Tortilla
Summary: She arrived one night at Meric castle, wounded and alone. One year later the outcast with no future was chosen to be the first girl Ranger. A fact Gilan might come to regret when the nightmares of his apprentice's past start catching up with her.
1. Alyx

**Disclaimer:** I don't own Ranger's Apprentice or anything you recognize from the books.(duh) But i do own Alyx, Mary, Erica, Johnny, Henry, Aaron, Matthew, and Jacob. Just in case you didn't know.^^

**A/N:** Okay peoples, this is my first RA fanfic and (technically) my second fanfiction (even though my first one isn't even finished) so bear with me please!^.^ Also, when i was looking for Ranger's Apprentice fanfics to read i only found like, 7 or 8, why is that! The song is called _Nobody's Home_ by Avril Lavigne...

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_I couldn't tell you why she felt that way_

_she felt it every day,_

_and I couldn't help her_

_I just watched her make the same mistakes again_

_What's wrong, what's wrong now_

_too many, too many problems_

_don't know where she belongs_

_where she belongs_

_She wants to go home_

_but nobody's home_

_that's where she lies, broken inside_

_With no place to go_

_no place to go_

_to dry her eyes, broken inside_

_Open your eyes and look outside_

_find the reasons why,_

_you've been rejected_

_and now you can't find what you left behind,_

_Be strong, be strong now_

_too many, too many problems_

_don't know where she belongs_

_where she belongs_

_She wants to go home_

_but nobody's home_

_that's where she lies, broken inside_

_With no place to go,_

_no place to go,_

_to dry her eyes, broken inside_

_Her feelings she hides, her dreams she can't find_

_she's losing her mind, she's falling behind_

_she can't find her place, she's losing her faith_

_she's fallen from grace, she's all over the place_

_She wants to go home_

_but nobody's home_

_that's where she lies, broken inside_

_With no place to go,_

_no place to go,_

_to dry her eyes, broken inside_

_She's lost inside, lost inside_

_She's lost inside, lost inside_

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**Alyx**

_**1**_

_A Ranger's Apprentice fanfic. Taking place 3 years after Will has been made a Ranger. Gilan is 33, Will is 24, Halt is 52, and Alyx is 15._

Alyx watched her ward mates in amusement. They were all either too sick or too excited to even think about eating. Tomorrow was the big day, the Choosing Day when all of the fifteen year old wards of Meric Fief decided what they wanted to do for the rest of their lives.

"How can you be so calm Alyx?" asked Mary, a small blond haired girl who was always fretting over something and who also tended to be quite the little chatter box. Personally, Alyx hated chatter boxes so she made it a point to stay well away from the girl.

Alyx held Mary's big brown eyes for a few moments with her own, cold gray ones before shrugging nonchalantly. "Because I'm not worried," she stated simply.

All four of her ward mates at the table went silent, staring at her with mild shock; all of their thoughts running along the lines of _'Not worried! Everyone gets worried before Choosing Day!'_

That was possibly one of the biggest lies Alyx had ever told in her life because truth be told, Alyx was probably even more worried than her ward mates; but she wasn't about to tell anyone that.

Just then Aaron -the ward bully- and his two worshipers Jacob and Matthew, burst through the door, thankfully taking everyone's attention off of Alyx.

Aaron walked over to the table designated for the fifteen year old wards and casually dumped the dark haired, studious Henry out of his seat. Aaron's two cronies followed his lead, liberating Johnny and Erica of their seats as well.

Henry, Johnny, and Erica quickly picked themselves up off the floor, making no comment whatsoever, and sat in the only empty seats left at the small round table; the ones that surrounded Alyx's chair. They were used to this type of treatment and they knew it was pointless to fight it.

Alyx hadn't made any friends in the one year she'd been at the ward because she generally lived by the rule _'keep yourself to yourself.'_ That rule had never let her down before and she had seen no reason to stop living by it when she had arrived at Meric castle last year. But also, because of this rule, it made the other kids her age believe that Alyx was stuck up. Causing her to become an outcast and a target for bullies like Aaron and his two friends.

"So, I see that little miss dark princess has deigned to join us poor, common folk today," sneered Aaron.

The young girl just rolled her eyes and continued eating. Aaron had no imagination whatsoever when it came to inventing insulting names. She had been called much worse than 'dark princess' in her short lifetime.

"What princess, cat got your tongue? Or are you just too stupid to answer," said Aaron with a malicious glint in his eyes; he always loved to tease and insult Alyx more than the other wards. It was sort of a challenge for him, he wanted to see if he could get a reaction from her, so far he had been unsuccessful but one day he would find out what made her tick.

Calmly finishing her meal and standing up, Alyx looked at Aaron, her eyes flashing with annoyance and... anticipation? As the tall, dark haired girl had gotten up the whole table went silent, tensely waiting to see what she would do.

"Come outside and we'll see just how 'stupid' I really am." It was time to pay the bully back for a years worth of misery and insults.

"Is that a challenge, princess?" Aaron asked incredulously.

"Yes," she replied simply, then turned and started walking towards the door.

As Alyx reached the doorway she turned around and, seeing everyone still sitting at the table in stunned silence said, "Well, are you coming? I don't have all day you know."

That got a reaction out of Aaron; he jumped up and started towards the door, an evil grin on his face. He was confident he was about to give this insolent girl a beating she would never forget.

Satisfied that he was following, Alyx turned and walked out the door, blinking in the bright afternoon sunlight. Seeing that the courtyard was empty, she decided to have the fight in the very center of it; where everyone could see Aaron get what was coming to him.

Alyx started towards the center of the large, cobbled area; she didn't enjoy making a public scene of Aaron's humiliation, it would only make him hate her more, and hate was a powerful enemy. But she had planned this carefully, beating him in front of everyone would be her only chance to get the job she wanted at the Choosing.

There were many things that Alyx's ward mates didn't know about her. One of those things was that she had spent the better part of her short life running from and fighting greater enemies than a fifteen year old bully. So she had a good chance of beating Aaron, who was untrained and unskilled at hand to hand combat. Besides, if things got out of hand and he tried to use the small dagger he thought he had kept concealed in his boot top, she had several of her own daggers that she kept hidden in various places on her person at all times.

Baron Aidan didn't allow the wards to carry weapons but, in the past few years it had become so much of a habit for Alyx to carry them that she felt naked if she didn't have a few handy. But, lets not dwell on the dark days of the past.

As Alyx arrived in the center of the courtyard she spotted the Ranger of Meric Fief -Gilan she thought his name was- leaning on his longbow in the shade of a tall tree that grew at the very edge of the courtyard. Alyx had given no sign that she'd seen the Ranger but she felt a small flutter of nervousness in her stomach; so far her plan was working out just as she'd wanted it to.

At that moment the young girl heard the door behind her fly open, turning she saw Aaron strut out, the nasty grin still plastered on his face, behind him it looked like half the ward had turned out to see the fight. As the bully swaggered towards her, Alyx did a few quick stretches to loosen up her muscles. It had been a while since she had had anyone to spar against besides air or a convenient tree.

Coming out of a toe-touch, Alyx saw Aaron standing in front of her with his arms crossed, tapping his foot with impatience.

"Hurry up princess, I don't have all day y'know."

Alyx snorted humorlessly, '_How orignal,' _she thought mockingly.

She slid into a good, solid fighting stance and raised her fists into the guard position. "Begin," she said confidently.

Aaron rolled his eyes and said, "Finally," then launched at her, trying to tackle and pin the girl to the ground. Quick as a snake, Alyx jumped aside and stuck her foot out, sending the bully flying face-first into the dirt.

Aaron lay there for a few moments, stunned. He quickly regained his wits and jumped up, enraged that he had been sent flying by a mere _girl_. Determined to make her pay, he charged at her again, this time with his head down. Once again, Alyx simply jumped aside and stuck her foot out, sending Aaron flying into the dirt once more.

The tall, dust covered bully jumped up and spat blood and dirt out of his mouth, his face beet red with humiliation and rage. This time he walked slowly towards Alyx, his hands clenched into fists by his sides. When he got within striking distance he sent a punch flying toward her face, fully intending to knock her front teeth out.

Alyx grabbed his fist in mid air and using his own momentum against him, threw the bigger boy over her hip and into the dirt again.

When Aaron jumped up again he flicked his eyes up to look over her shoulder; it was an almost imperceptible movement but Alyx's sharp eyes caught it.

She quickly turned sideways, keeping Aaron in her peripheral vision, and saw that his two friends had come up behind her. The tall girl cursed silently under her breath, this fight had just gotten a whole lot trickier, she hadn't planned on fighting all three bullies at once. The young ward hoped she hadn't gotten in over her head.

All three boys charged at her at the same time; quickly jumping back and to the left, Alyx grabbed Aaron by back of his shirt and his belt, practically throwing him into Jacob. Just as she did that, Matthew slammed into her, knocking her to the ground with him on top of her. Quickly freeing her right hand, Alyx punched the bully's throat; he rolled off of her with a choked cry, clutching his neck.

By the time that had happened, Aaron and Jacob had untangled themselves and were coming towards her again.

Alyx jumped up and went on the attack, she ran to one side of her attackers so Jacob was in between her and Aaron and quickly kicked him in the chest. Sending him sprawling backward into his partner, the wind knocked out of him.

Aaron quickly untangled himself from his fallen friend and moved toward Alyx again. Just as he reached her she lashed out a hard and fast punch at his face, sending him staggering back clutching his soon-to-be black eye.

The girl, having a few seconds respite while the bullies regrouped, glanced over to where Matt had fallen and to her surprise, he wasn't there. She realized a split second before someone grabbed her from behind that she had made a mistake assuming he was out of the fight.

Matt was holding her in a tight headlock. Alyx quickly turned her head into he crook of his arm so he couldn't choke her, then drove the heel of her boot into the arch of his ankle, making him grunt in pain and loosen his grip. She stomped backwards into his ankle again and drove her elbow into his stomach, she had to get out of the headlock before the other bullies reached them or things would go very badly for her. She only had a few seconds left so in desperation she sank her teeth into Matt's arm, biting him as hard as she could. He yelled in pain and jerked his arm away, freeing Alyx just moments before the other two bullies would have reached them.

"What's going on here!" Bellowed a deep voice from outside the ring of cheering spectators.

Everyone quickly fell silent as the sergeant of the guard shoved his was through the crowd of wards. As he reached the center of the circle he took in the appearance of the 4 wards with a disapproving frown. "Brawling like 3 year old are we!" He yelled. Alyx didn't think it was possible for the sergeant to say anything at a normal volume. "Well since you 4 seem to enjoy acting like babies how bout I treat you like babies! You four line up and bend over, I'll tan your hides for disturbing the peace in the castle!"

"Now now Sargent Quincy I don't think that will be necessary," came a smooth voice from outside the ring of wards. The Ranger Gilan slipped between the young girls and boys until he too was standing in the center of the circle.

The sargent quickly came to attention, looking slightly nervous when he recognized the Ranger. "But sir, meanin' no disrespect of course but..."

Gilan raised his hand to stop the flow of words coming from the soldier. "I was watching the whole thing. These three boys were getting what they deserved. If it had gotten out of hand I would have stopped it."

"But," Quincy began again, and again was cut off.

"Sargent," Gilan said a little more forcefully this time. "Let it go."

The man swallowed audibly. "Yes sir."

Ranger Gilan nodded. "Good." He turned to the four you wards who had been fighting, looking at them sternly. "I trust you four will not be found brawling again?"

"No sir," they all replied respectfully. Everyone knew that Rangers were black magicians and not to be trifled with.

"Excellent," Gilan said. "Now be off with you, go nurse your bruises." He turned to the crowd of young wards who had been watching the fight. "Well? The shows over, move along."

Everyone quickly scattered to their own respective tasks, not wanting to annoy the Ranger. They all knew the stories of how Rangers were masters of the black arts. This man, no matter how nice he looked, was dangerous and to be obeyed immediately.

"Oh and Alyx!" The Ranger called after the retreating girl.

She turned, wondering what he would want with her. "Sir?"

Gilan smiled slightly at her. "Good work."

The corner of her mouth lifted up in what passed for a smile. "Thank you sir." Alyx turned and started making her way back to the girl's dormitory to clean herself up, on the outside she appeared bored, but inside she was leaping for joy. Her plan had worked.

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Please be kind and review! Oh, and I'm also going to write a funny little tidbit down here every time I post a new chapter...

**When the going gets tough, the tough get going. The not-so-tough scream for help.**

_hehe!_


	2. The Choosing

Alyx got up at five the next morning, which was her usual time; and got dressed in brown breeches and an old shirt. Once she had done that she arranged her daggers, hiding two of them in special sheaths for her wrists, one in the back of her shirt collar, and one in her boot top. Alyx checked her appearance in the tall mirror that all the girls in the ward shared, making sure that the daggers were invisible. Satisfied that no one could see any of her concealed knives, she finger combed her straight, dark brown hair until it looked presentable. She had let it grow out until it just barely brushed the tops of her shoulders and decided that she liked it at that length instead of the short, jaw length that she used to keep it to.

The tall girl laced up her well worn, knee length black boots, and quietly walked out of the room of sleeping girls, heading towards the kitchen, where she swiped a hunk of bread and cheese for her breakfast.

Creeping out of the busy kitchen and into the cool, misty gray light of early morning, she slipped into the shadows at the edge of the empty courtyard, heading off into the forest that bordered the castle's north wall. A few minutes later Alyx arrived at the small clearing she regularly used to escape from daily life and glanced up the the sky. It looked dark and forbidding. That, plus the familiar ache in her left wrist meant they would definitely have nasty weather for the next couple of days.

She sighed and began jogging steadily around the clearing. After she had run for about 45 minutes, she walked unsteadily over to the small spring at the edge of the clearing and took a few mouthfuls of water.

Panting, Alyx laid back and waited for her thumping heart to calm down while she was eating the slightly smashed bread and cheese.

After 10 or so minutes and one last drink of water Alyx continued with her exercises. She had made sure that in her time as a ward at the castle that she stayed in shape, she never knew when she might have to be on the run again, fighting for every moment of her life.

She practiced all the flexibility exercises she knew, then went on to practice throwing her daggers and also fighting with them, hand-to-hand combat, and swordplay, practicing first with her right hand then switching to her left.

All of her weapons were simple but beautifully made and perfectly balanced. The hilts on her sword and daggers were undecorated, with beat-up cross guards and well worn black leather scabbards and binding on the hilts. But the blades were an entirely different matter; they were made of good quality blued steel, something that was not cheap at all. All of her blades had been given to her by a friend, as a farewell present. She hoped he was alright, with his job he could very easily have been killed.

Alyx glanced up at the sky and sighed tiredly, she would have to hurry if she didn't want to get rained on. Quickly, the young girl ran over to the small, freezing cold pool and stripped off her shirt and breeches, grimacing as she saw all the scars she had collected over the years.

Grabbing an old towel she had borrowed from the clothes lines some time ago Alyx, dipped it into the pool and washed off all the sweat and dirt she had collected over the past three hours; she didn't want to be dirty for the Choosing.

That done, Alyx quickly put her daggers in place and pulled on the change of clothes she had packed; they consisted of black breeches, a simple white shirt, and a soft black leather jerkin. Normally, a ward wouldn't have such fine clothes but Alyx already had these things when she arrived at the castle last year. She finished dressing and carefully wrapped her sword in waterproof cloth, putting it under a heavy growth of brush that served almost as well as a cave.

After she made sure everything was well concealed she grabbed the pack that contained her old practice clothes and took off towards the castle; if she didn't hurry she would be late to the Choosing.

Arriving at an empty girls' dormitory, Alyx dumped her bag onto her small cot and, looking around saw a maid. "Have all the fifteen year old wards gone up to the baron's office?" she asked urgently.

"Yes miss," the young girl replied shyly with a curtsy.

Alyx growled in frustration and turned, sprinting for the tower at the very center of the castle.

The half-asleep guards at the doorway to the central tower looked surprised to see Alyx running towards the tower but thankfully, let her pass. One of them even joking called after her, "Run girly run!"

She sprinted up the spiraling tower steps taking them three at a time; grumbling what she thought about barons who kept their offices in the highest rooms in towers. Alyx arrived at the top of the steps just as Owen, Baron Aidan's secretary, was about to lead a line of nervous wards into the baron's office.

Seeing that Owen had them lined up from shortest to tallest, Alyx took her place as third in line, between Erica and Johnny. The secretary gave her a reproachful look for being late but otherwise said nothing as he led the line of nervous wards into the baron's office.

Walking into the big room Alyx saw Baron Aidan standing behind his massive oak desk, already waiting for them. The baron was an intimidating figure. He was a tall, muscular man in his mid thirties with midnight black hair and piercing green eyes that seemed as if they could peer into your very soul.

When he saw the three beat-up bullies he remarked dryly, "I certainly hope the other boys look worse that you three."

Aaron, Jacob and Matthew turned bright red and look down at their feet in shame and embarrassment.

"I'll take that as a no," Baron Aidan said with a glint of laughter in his eyes.

Turning to his short, red headed secretary the baron said, "The craft masters may come in now."

Owen nodded and said, "Yes, my lord." He turned and walked over to a side door. Opening it, he stepped out and said, "You may come in now," to the unseen craft masters waiting in the hall.

Jeff, the trainer of the massive battle horses walked in first, followed by Sir Luke the battle master, Ella who instructed all of the maids at the castle, Markus who taught all of the future scribes, and Amelia, the head tailor of Meric Fief.

The Baron nodded to each craft master in turn as they stepped through the door.

Seeing that the Ranger wasn't among the line of craft masters Alyx quickly scanned the room, if he didn't come today all of her plans would be ruined. She breathed a silent sigh of relief when a door behind the baron's desk open quietly, allowing the tall green and gray cloaked figure to slip silently into the office.

Alyx supposed that it was beneath a Ranger's dignity to enter the room with all of the 'normal' craft masters.

"All right," said the baron, getting right to the point, "we might as well get this over with. Who's first?"

Jacob strode forward, stating confidently, "Jacob Jones, battle school, my lord."

The battle master stepped forward and looked Jacob up and down, studying him carefully. Then, he turned to Aaron and Matthew, looking over them carefully as well. He asked the two other bullies abruptly, with the air of one who knows what the answer will be, "I suppose you two would like to join the battle school as well?"

Aaron an Mat both replied stiffly, "Yes, sir!"

"Hmm," mused the tall, dark haired battle master, studying the three boys carefully.

"Where did you three get those bruises," he questioned abruptly.

All three of the bullies turned pale at the battle master's question, glancing at each other to see which one of them would answer.

"Well, out with it!" Battle master Luke ordered sternly.

Finally Aaron mumbled something at his shoes, not daring to look at the imposing figure of the battle master.

"What? I can't hear you boy," the battle master said, tapping the hilt of his sword in annoyance.

The humiliated bully swallowed hard and managed to whisper, "We were fighting sir."

Master Luke frowned in disapproval. "We do not allow brawling in my battle school young man. I trust you had a good reason to fight?"

"We... I was challenged, sir."

"Challenged? By who? And if only you were challenged then why do your two friends have bruises as well?" Asked the battle master suspiciously.

Aaron raised a trembling finger and pointed at Alyx; who was watching the scene unfold with interest.

The battle master peered at the young girl and blinked several times. Finally he turned back to the three bullies and asked harshly, "Is this some kind of joke?" His other question was apparently forgotten.

"N-n-n-no, sir," stuttered Aaron; who was wishing he could melt into the floor.

"So you're trying to tell me that a _girl_ did this to you three?" Asked Master Luke incredulously.

Aaron simply nodded, keeping his gaze intently focused on his feet.

The battle master shook his head, out of disbelief or disappointment Alyx wasn't sure, and said tersely, "Well then, maybe I should accept _her_ into the battle school instead of you three." He turned to Baron Aidan and said, "I will not accept them into battle school."

Before the baron could reply Aaron threw himself on the ground in front of Battle Master Luke. "No! Please sir! I promise I'll do well, just please accept me!" He cried, tugging on the battle master's tunic.

Sir Luke had the grace to look embarrassed but still held to his decision.

Jacob and Matthew quickly picked up the sobbing Aaron and shuffled him back into the line, trying to get him to shut up so he wouldn't embarrass them further.

Alyx felt a twinge of guilt, she hadn't meant to ruin the three boy's chances of entering battle school. Now they would just hate her even more.

The baron cleared his throat and rubbed the back of his neck in discomfort before asking the three boys if they had any second choices. They all shook their heads no. Baron Aidan turned to all of the craft masters and asked, "Do any of you have a place for these three?" Everyone shifted uncomfortably and said no, looking pityingly at the three young wards. The baron sighed, a sad look in his eyes. "Very well then. You three will need to stay after to discuss your options. Now, who's next?"

Johnny quickly stepped forward, eager to forget the scene the bullies had caused and dispel the tension in the room. "Jonathan Walker, my lord. I would like to go to horse school, my lord."

Before the baron had time to ask, the horse master said, "Approved my lord. The lad hangs around the stables a lot and it seems he really does have a gift with horses."

"All right then," remarked the baron.

Alyx stepped gracefully forward with a slightly foreboding feeling. She could feel everyone's eyes on her, studying the girl who could beat up three boys like a specimen under a microscope.

"My name is Alyx, my lord," she said simply; trying to calm the butterflies in her stomach. Taking a deep breath she plunged ahead; saying calmly and with no uncertainty in her voice, "I would like to become a Ranger, my lord."

There was stunned silence in the room for a full five seconds before the baron recovered enough to speak.

"You want to become Ranger Gilan's apprentice?" he asked disbelievingly.

"Yes, my lord." Alyx replied as calmly as she could.

"But... but he isn't even here!" spluttered the battle master; all the other craft masters grunted or nodded in agreement, though the baron remained silent Alyx noted with interest.

"Isn't he, sir?" the young girl asked innocently.

Everyone realized they hadn't actually _looked_ for the oh so elusive Ranger and quickly scanned the room.

An amused voice came out of the shadows behind the baron, follow by a tall green and gray cloaked figure saying, "You have to hand it to her, my lord, the girl's pretty good."

The Ranger seemed to have startled everyone in the room except Alyx and the baron.

Baron Aidan opened his mouth to make a remark but Gilan continued before he could speak, "I think I just might take her, milord."

"You mean... you actually _want_ to taker her on as your apprentice?" asked the battle master incredulously; the baron shot Sir Luke a warning look.

"Are you sure about this Gilan?" asked Baron Aidan skeptically. He didn't understand Ranger's at all, but if Gilan really wanted this girl as his apprentice the baron knew it wasn't his place to stop him. Ranger's ultimately answered to the king, not the barons. He had no authority to stop the Ranger if he wanted to take her as his apprentice.

"Yes milord, I'm sure."

Seeing that the baron was about to give in to the Ranger, Battle Master Luke butted into the conversation again, "But to be a Ranger you have to be able to fight, and everyone knows girls can't fight!"

"Oh really?" Gilan asked with a wicked gleam in his eye. "Tell me battle master, just how much experience have you had fighting girls to become such an expert?"

Sir Luke's face turned crimson red and his mouth worked up and down, but no sound came out; making him look rather fish-like.

"Gilan," the baron said, "How do you know this girl will be able to learn the skills of a Ranger? I doubt she will ever be strong enough to draw those massive longbows all you Ranger's carry."

"I've been watching her carefully over the past year, my lord," he replied respectfully. "I believe she has the talent to become a Ranger, and that is not something I am willing to let go to waste."

"Talent," snorted the battle master derisively, apparently he had regained the power of speech. "What good is talent? She'll never be as strong as a man, nor will she have the endurance or stamina to last long in a fight."

"She defeated those three, by herself." Gilan said, gesturing towards Mat, Aaron and Jacob.

"She couldn't have defeated them by herself," Sir Luke said emphatically.

"I saw her do it." The Ranger replied, there was a slight warning tone in his voice. He was starting to get annoyed at the battle master.

No one had an answer to that, you didn't call a Ranger a liar if you knew what was good for you.

After a long, tense pause in the conversation the Ranger said, "I believe I have a solution to this. If Sir Luke chooses one of his trainees for Alyx to fight in hand-to-hand combat and she wins, that proves her worthy to be my apprentice, if not..." he trailed off with a shrug. "How does that sound?"

"Fine with me," said a triumphant looking battle master; he was certain that even his weakest trainee could easily defeat the girl with one hand tied behind his back.

Gilan looked at Alyx questioningly.

"Fine with me too," she replied with a shrug.

"When are we going to have this competition?" asked the baron.

"Right now, in the courtyard," replied Gilan. "You should probably go pick one of your students, battle master."

"We'll meet you in the courtyard Ranger," Sir Luke replied confidently as he strode out of the room.

"Come on girl, let's get down the courtyard," said Gilan, gesturing towards the door.

When they arrived in the place where the fight was to be held Alyx sat down to do a few stretches to loosed up her muscles.

Gilan stood by and watched carefully while leaning on his ever present longbow; Alyx was a puzzle to him, a puzzle he was determined to solve.

Sir Luke arrived a few minutes later with a tall, muscular youth beside him.

Alyx sized up the confused looking boy in front of her, thinking he wouldn't be an easy opponent to beat. He was handsome, with dancing green eyes, dark brown hair, and a slightly crooked nose that had obviously been broken, adding a roguish look to his face. The young man moved with grace, a sign that he had been well trained and was well accustomed to fighting. Apparently the battle master was making sure she would be totally outmatched on every level. At least, that's what he thought.

The young girl really thought all of this was distasteful, especially because it would only make enemies of this boy, the battle master, and every conservative man and woman from here to Castle Araluen itself. And one thing Alyx did not need was more enemies, but she saw no other alternative.

"Are you ready, girl?" asked the battle master scornfully.

"Yes," replied Alyx calmly.

"Wait a second," said an even more confused boy beside Sir Luke. "You want me to fight _her_?"

"Yes."

"But..."

"Do you have a problem with that, boy?"

At the battle master's tone of voice the poor young lad swallowed what he was about to say and shook his head.

"Good. Now let's get started, we don't have all day!" said Sir Luke a little too cheerfully.

Casting one more uncertain glance toward the battle master, the brown haired boy stepped reluctantly forward.

Alyx moved forward also; when they met in the middle she stuck out her hand- as was the custom in a friendly duel- and waited for the miserable looking boy to shake it. Surprised that a girl would know this, the tall boy hesitantly shook her hand while saying "I'm sorry," so quietly that only Alyx heard it.

She replied equally quietly, "So am I," then stepped back and settled into a well balanced stance.

The boy reluctantly copied her and waited.

Alyx, seeing that he wasn't going to deliver the first blow, aimed a weak kick at his chest which he dodged easily.

He retaliated quickly, throwing an equally half-hearted punch toward her face; Alyx grabbed his fist and using one of her favorite moves, used his own momentum to throw him over her hip.

He landed in a smooth roll that quickly brought him back to his feet.

Alyx looked into the boy's startled emerald eyes and grinned mischievously at him, clearly inviting him to do his best._ This could be fun,_ she thought. It had been a long time since she'd fought someone who was actually trained in hand-to-hand combat.

Since the tall boy still seemed uncertain about fighting her, Alyx lunged at him and snapped a fast kick towards his head.

The boy, who hadn't expected her to be able to move so fast, just barely ducked in time. Before he realized what he was doing, training kicked in and he sent a kick of his own towards her stomach. To his great surprise Alyx blocked it easily and circled him.

She suddenly lunged forward, sending a quick jab toward his left shoulder. He blocked it and shoved against her side, trying to knock her off balance. Alyx twisted away and tripped him again, this time making him land rather ungracefully on his stomach.

When he jumped up Alyx tackled him to the ground again, trying to pin him and end the fight. He quickly muscled his way out of her grip and tried to push her down and hold her arm behind her back. Alyx realized what he was trying to do and quickly wriggled out of his grip, springing to her feet. She knew that if he was able to turn the fight into a wrestling match she would have virtually no chance.

Even though the boy was taller and stronger than Alyx, she was faster, more agile and more flexible; it was these things that won her the fight for she eventually got his arm behind his back and used it as a lever to push his face into the dirt, she pressed her knee into his back to make sure he couldn't get up again.

"I yield," he said in a muffled voice filled with laughter. When Alyx let go of him he rolled over with a groan.

The triumphant girl got up off the ground and offered her hand to the boy who was still lying in the dirt; he took it gratefully and let her help him to his feet.

"Well then, does that satisfy you battle master?" asked Gilan, still leaning on his longbow.

Sir Luke just stood there with a flabbergasted look on his face.

"I'll take that as a yes then." He turned to the triumphant girl, "Be at my cabin at six a.m. sharp," he commanded.

At that he turned and walked away, his gray and green cloak fading into the background until the Ranger just seemed to disappear into thin air.

The battle master shuddered when he saw the Ranger just seem to disappear and turned to Alyx, eying her speculatively.

"If you're smart girl you wont be late," said the baron, obviously trying to hide his amazement. After a few moments he said, "That was very good."

Alyx was surprised, she certainly hadn't expected him to compliment her.

"Thank you, my lord."

"You're welcome," he replied graciously.

Battle Master Luke glared at her. "Come on Tristan, you have classes to get back to," he said harshly.

When Sir Luke and the tall boy were out of Alyx's earshot the boy said tentatively, "May I ask a question battle master?"

The battle master sighed but nodded in assent.

"Who was that girl? I don't ever remember seeing her when I was in the ward."

Sir Luke thought carefully before answering. "Rumor has it she arrived at the castle in the dead of night last year, half-starved and practically begging to be taken into the ward."

Tristan raised his eyebrows in disbelief. "Somehow I can't imagine her begging," he said with a dry chuckle.

"Makes you wonder where she comes from and why she's hiding, doesn't it? She's obviously not Araluen."

"How do you know she's hiding, sir?"

"I was with the baron when the guards brought her to him; she had a broken arrow shaft sticking out of her shoulder and sword wounds on her leg and side. When she saw the baron she immediately asked to be taken into the ward, just after the baron accepted she passed out. We questioned her later about who had attacked her, but she never would answer. We eventually got tired and dropped the subject, letting her live in peace."

After a few moments of silence Tristan asked, "Do you know her name, sir?"

"I believe it's Alyx," the big man replied. "Now stop asking questions and go to whatever class you need to be at right now."

"Yes, sir," he replied as he headed off to his painfully boring history class.

The whole rest of the day Tristan, acted slightly distracted, wondering about the strange gray eyed girl.

* * *

_Aaron sat on the edge of the great wall that surrounded the castle, watching the blood red sunset, wondering how his life had gone so wrong. First his parents abandoned him at this place, then that Alyx girl had ruined his greatest dreams. He hated her, hated his parents for what they did to him. But he swore on his own grave that one day he would have his revenge, or die trying._

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Alright, you guys know the drill... just click that little review button! I couldn't care less if all you wrote was Good! or Nice! just please, review!

_**Quotes:**_

_Time between slipping on a peel and smacking the pavement... One bananosecond._

**I took up meditation. I like to have an espresso first, just to make it more challenging.**


	3. Day One

**Disclaimer**: As everyone already knows I don't own Ranger's Apprentice.

_**A/n: **Hi everybody! I wanted to thank everyone who reviewed last time and also my beta Frozen Wolf13 as well. Oh, and I changed the second chapter in some places...just thought you guys might want to know._

_Enjoy! :D_

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When Alyx woke up she dressed and arranged her daggers as usual but decided against doing her exercises, she wouldn't have enough time and she still needed to pack. It didn't take the girl long to put her few belongings into a small bag, she didn't have much. Just a few spare changes of clothing and undergarments, oil, cloth and a whetstone for her blades, healing salve and a stone with an odd looking symbol on it. Alyx also had her sword with her, she had retrieved it last night so she wouldn't have to hike out to the clearing in the morning. She pulled the blade out from under her bed, still wrapped in the old cloak and laid it with the rest of her belongings.

Alyx sighed, surveying the place she had called home for the past year. She couldn't say that she would miss it, most of the girls were so idiotic. Always gossiping about their latest crush or some other totally inconsequential piece of information. There was one girl, Lia, who wasn't as air-headed as the others, she was kind to Alyx and tried to include her whenever she could, maybe she could find a way to thank the girl for her kindness. Alyx thought about it for a moment but decided against it, it wasn't worth the effort.

The tall girl looked out the window, trying to judge what time it was. After a few moments she gave up, it was too cloudy and she never was very good at judging the time in the first place. Alyx guessed that it was around 5:30, if she left now she would be a bit early but there was no reason why she couldn't be early. It wouldn't hurt to keep the Ranger on his toes.

When Alyx arrived at Gilan's small cabin she saw it had slightly sagging steps that led up to a porch that ran the length of the homey little cabin. There were also two comfortable looking canvas chairs on the porch and a chimney on the left side of the house.

Alyx walked up the creaky steps and knocked lightly on the door. It opened on noisy leather hinges, revealing the slightly surprised face of Gilan.

"You're here early," he said.

The dark haired girl suppressed the urge to roll her eyes at Gilan for stating the obvious, instead simply nodding.

Gilan quickly stepped aside and allowed his new apprentice into the room, closing the door behind her.

Alyx surveyed what she hoped was to be her home for the next five or so years. The cabin was small; the first room you came into when you walked through the door was a kitchen, dining, and living room combined. There was a small, roughly hewn table with two chairs off to the side of the cozy little room room. On the left was a large fire place with two comfortable looking chairs in front of it. There were also two doors that led off the main room that Alyx suspected led off to two respective bedrooms. She discovered she was correct in her assumption when Gilan pointed to the right hand door and said, "That's your room."

Alyx nodded and went into it. A small comfortable looking bed, a short dresser and a mirror made up the furniture in the small bedroom. There was also a window that overlooked the backyard of the homey little cabin. Peering out this window Alyx saw a small barn and corral; she also discovered that it had started raining. Walking back to her bed Alyx unceremoniously dumped her sword and meager possessions onto it and went back out into the main room. Finding a place on the wall she leaned casually back against it and studied her new craft master.

He was extremely lanky with messy brown hair, mischievous brown eyes. Upon closer inspection Alyx saw he had a small scar on the left side of his forehead, and many more scars on his calloused hands. Looking past him Alyx noted with interest that there was a sword hanging on a hook next to the Ranger's green and gray dappled cloak; she had previously thought Ranger's didn't carry swords.

She was shaken out of her investigation by Gilan's warm voice asking, "Was that a sword I saw in that cloak you were carrying?"

At Alyx's nod he asked, "Would you mind showing it to me?"

She turned and went into her room, grabbed her sword and went back out into the living room and handed Gilan the well worn weapon. She watched him inspect the beat-up leather scabbard then draw the blade, he raised his eyebrows in surprised at the quality of the blue tinged steel.

"This must have been made by a master. Where did you get it?"

"A friend," she said in a tone that did not encourage further questioning.

Gilan noted this with some interest and dropped the subject. He gave the sword a few experimental swings before asking, "How well can you use this thing?"

"Well enough to get by," she replied. Then as an after thought added, "I'm no master though."

Gilan paused to think for a moment before asking, "Would you like to learn sword play as well as Ranger skills?"

"Yes please," Alyx replied. Just barely concealing her eagerness. She had always loved sword fighting and regretted not being able to finish her training back home.

"Can you use any other weapons besides a sword?" asked Gilan.

"Daggers, and you already know I can fight hand-to-hand."

Chuckling, Gilan said, "Yes, indeed I do." The Ranger shifted to a more comfortable position in his chair before asking, "Have you ever shot a bow before?"

Alyx hesitated slightly before answering, "Yes, I have."

"Are you good at it?" probed Gilan. Getting information out of this girl was proving to be a tedious business.

She looked a little rueful as she said, "Last time I tried I couldn't hit the broad side of a barn."

Gilan chuckled at that, saying, "I guess we'll need to work on your shooting then. "After a slight pause he said, "I expect you can ride as well?"

"Of course," Alyx replied.

After an awkward silence Gilan said with a small grin, "Well then, since it's raining outside we might as well do a few chores."

Alyx noted the mischievous twinkle in his eyes and stifled a groan.

"We can start with...ah, sweeping I suppose," he said while looking searchingly around the small cabin.

Apparently because of the rain, Gilan was having trouble coming up with something for his new apprentice to do.

"The broom and dustpan are over by the cupboard."

Alyx nodded and moved off of her place on the wall and went over to the cupboard; upon finding the broom she began sweeping the small cabin. Which was the beginning of a very long morning of doing nothing but housework while Gilan sat and watched or studied reports.

At one point Gilan asked his new apprentice to clean out the closet, then went outside to see if the rain had let up. After a few moments he heard a huge crash and a surprised yelp from inside, he walked quickly through the door and immediately burst into laughter when he saw Alyx glaring accusingly up at him from under a massive pile of junk.

By the time she had dug herself out of the small mound Gilan was still chuckling, she raised her left eyebrow and crossed her arms over her chest in a gesture that was so remarkably Halt-like that it set Gilan to laughing again.

"What, pray tell, is so funny?" Alyx demanded sharply.

Gilan -not wanting to annoy his apprentice any further- mastered himself and shook his head, saying with a grin, "Oh, nothing."

Alyx grumbled in annoyance and turned back to the task of cleaning the _mystery_ closet.

When she finally finished cleaning sometime around noon Gilan asked, "Are you hungry?"

"Yes," Alyx replied.

"Well then, we'll have to see what we can do about that. Is there anything in particular that you like?"

"Not really."

"Then we shall feast on bread, cheese, and jerky since that is all I have at the moment," said Gilan, looking a little sheepish. "I didn't get to the market yesterday."

Alyx hid a small grin at her craft master's forgetfulness. "That's perfectly alright with me," she said.

During lunch the rain let up, so after they had finished Gilan told Alyx to fetch her sword and meet him outside. Stepping onto the porch she saw the Ranger standing in the middle of the muddy yard with his sword belted on. Quickly doing the same with her own blade, Alyx went out to meet him. She took in the footing they would be fighting on; the ground was relatively smooth, though because of the rain it would be slippery, she would have to be careful.

"This will be a practice duel so I can assess your skill level; the duel will end when one of us yields. Understood?" said Gilan seriously, Alyx nodded in reply.

"Good," he said, stepping back and drawing his sword. When the Ranger saw that his apprentice was ready he raised his sword and said, "Begin."

Alyx started the fight with a swift, arcing sweep at Gilan's head; he blocked it smoothly and countered with a slash at her side that she evaded easily. Once they got a feel for each other the pace of the fight quickened, attacks and blocks became hardly discernible from one another, the clearing ringing with the clash of their blades.

Blade met blade and both fighters heaved, trying to bear down on one another. Alyx struggled, her muscles screaming in protest; this is where Gilan had a definite advantage, in height as well as strength. Since this was just a practice duel Alyx threw caution to the wind and sidestepped in a risky move, at the same time she swung her sword at the Ranger's unprotected side. He quickly jumped out of the way and they battled on.

After a few more minutes Alyx thought she saw an opening in Gilan's defense and lunged at it, only to find her sword wrenched out of her hand and Gilan's blade resting lightly on her neck.

"I yield," Alyx said stepping back and quickly going to fetch her sword out of the mud.

Gilan smiled approvingly and said, "That was very well fought, Alyx."

"Thank you," she replied while successfully fighting down a small blush. It was a great compliment from a master like Gilan. The young girl had realized from the moment they started the duel that the Ranger was a true master of the blade and she was far outmatched. It would be exciting learning from him she thought.

"Who taught you? I've never seen a style quite like yours." Gilan asked curiously.

"Just a friend," Alyx replied evasively.

Gilan noticed her face had gone as blank and hard as stone.

"Well then," he said. " I guess we'll move on to the other weapon's you'll be studying. Wait here a moment."

A few minutes later he appeared carrying an oddly shaped bundle and motioned for her to follow him as he headed off into the woods behind the cabin.

After a full fifteen minutes of walking Alyx noted they had passed the same lightning marked tree at least five times and said a little too sweetly, "Is your sense of direction so bad that you get lost in your own back yard or is there some point to walking in circles?"

Gilan glanced back at her with a playful little grin on his face and said grandly, "Why yes m'lady, forgive a lowly Ranger for speaking so boldly, but I was simply testing your marvelous powers of observation and patience. I did not mean to awaken that sassy tongue you have in your head."

Alyx crossed her arms and raised an eyebrow at his antics; exactly what Halt would have done if he had been there.

"Well then," said Alyx, "since my _marvelous _powers have now been thoroughly tested I don't suppose we could go to wherever we were going?"

"Your wish is my command, m'lady," replied Gilan; his eyes sparkling with suppressed laughter. Turning with an artful flourish of his dappled cloak, he strode purposefully off into the forest.

Alyx blinked in surprise when, a few minutes later, they came to the edge of a large clearing. Looking around she saw they were walking towards some targets set up at the other end of the clearing. Stopping a few yards in front of one of the targets Gilan proceeded to unwrap the bundle he had been carrying, revealing a bow and quiver of arrows, an odd looking double scabbard with one short dagger and a longer knife below it, and a dappled Ranger cloak.

"Here's your very own Ranger cloak," said Gilan as he handed it to her.

"Thank you," said Alyx, quickly putting it on. She took a moment to look down and examine herself before saying, "It fits well," to Gilan.

"Good," he replied. "I had hoped it would."

He bent down a picked up a bow that was a little shorter than Alyx. "This is a re-curve bow," he said, handing it to his apprentice to examine.

"You'll use this bow until your strong enough to draw a regular longbow," he explained.

"And," said Gilan as he held up the double scabbard and pointed to the shorter knife, "this is a throwing knife, the one below it is called a saxe knife."

Alyx nodded.

"Do you have any questions?" asked Gilan with the air of one who already knows the answer.

The girl thought for a moment before replying, "Not really."

Gilan looked a little surprised at this but made no remark, instead bending to pick up a black leather arm guard. He handed it to Alyx, who slipped it onto her left fore arm and adjusted it until it was comfortable.

"Okay, do you know how to string your bow?" asked Gilan.

Alyx pursed her lips, as if trying to recall a far off memory, and then nodded in assent.

"Good," he replied.

"I want you to see how close you can get to the bulls-eye on that target," he said, pointing to the one they were standing closest to.

Alyx strung her re-curve bow with the awkwardness of one who is unaccustomed to using a bow and quickly drew an arrow out of her quiver. She drew back the bowstring with relative ease, took aim, and fired.

At the time Alyx had been doing this Gilan had been looking on with an approving eye, beginning to think that the girl was just being modest when she'd said she couldn't hit the broad side of a barn. He thought that right up until his apprentice released the arrow.

Just as Alyx released the bowstring the arrow slipped off of the hand that was holding the bow and supporting the arrow shaft, causing the arrow to go cartwheeling off to her left, right at Gilan. The Ranger threw himself backwards and landed flat on his back with the wind knocked out of him and a very surprised look on his face.

Alyx immediately dropped her bow as if it had burned her and strode over to Gilan, helping him into a sitting position. After he had caught his breath he looked at his apprentice with a bemused expression and said, "How in the world did you manage to do that?"

The young girl suppressed a wave of laughter at the look on the Ranger's face. "I told you I was terrible with a bow."

"Well yes, I suppose you did, but I didn't believe anyone could be _that_ bad."

"Haha, very funny," Alyx replied in a joking tone. "I am sorry though."

Gilan smiled good-naturedly before saying, "That's okay, I've certainly learned my lesson though."

Alyx smiled a little at that and bent to pick up the forgotten bow.

"Just leave it there for now," said Gilan. "We'll start your real training tomorrow."

The girl nodded and moved her bow off to the side so it wouldn't be in the way, then turned back to Gilan, waiting to see what he wanted her to do next.

"Let's see how well you can use the throwing knife," said Gilan. Picking up the belt with the saxe and throwing knives and handing it to his apprentice.

She accepted it and drew the throwing knife before setting the belt on the ground again. She wouldn't have been able to put it on over her sword belt.

"Same thing as with the bow but this time please try and actually _hit _the target and not me," instructed Gilan.

Alyx glared at him in mock anger before hefting the small blade to test it's weight and balance. It was a beautifully made weapon she thought, the blade was shaped for throwing and was made out of good quality blued steel, it would fit right in with her other weapons she thought approvingly. Once the girl had finished examining the knife she took her position and launched it at the target, bringing it up and back, behind her head in the proper from for throwing a knife. It hit in the dead center of the bulls eye with a satisfying _thock. _

"Apparently there's nothing wrong with your dagger throwing skills," said the amused Ranger. As an afterthought he asked, "Do you have any knives of your own?"

Alyx nodded. "Counting the one you just gave me I have five," she replied.

Gilan was slightly surprised at this. "Why would a young lady like you need to carry around four daggers?"

The young apprentice shrugged. "You never know what could happen," she replied evasively.

Puzzled, the Ranger frowned, the enigma of his apprentice just kept growing more and more confusing the more time he spent with her. "Can you fight with your daggers too?" He inquired.

The gray eyed girl looked at Gilan for a few moments, an unreadable expression written across her features. "Yes," she replied curtly. Alyx never like people prying into the details of her life. "Now, I wonder where that arrow went," she said, changing the subject before her master could think up more questions to drill her with.

Gilan took the hint and dropped the subject. "I'm sure I have no idea. I was too busy trying to get my breath back to notice," he replied teasingly.

Alyx rolled her eyes at him but otherwise said nothing, walking off to search for the missing arrow.

A few moments later a drop of rain landed on the tip of Gilan's nose. "Forget about the arrow, Alyx!" called Gilan to his apprentice. "It's about to rain!" he said, pointing at the threatening clouds above them just as flash of lightning appeared.

Alyx straightened out of her stoop and started jogging back toward the Ranger just as the first fat drops of rain fell. She quickened her pace to a run, stopping to scoop up her bow and quiver before sprinting with Gilan back toward the cabin. Unfortunately, the rain didn't hold off long enough for them to make it back to Gilan's home so, by the time they reached his front porch they were both freezing and soaked to the skin by the downpour.

"I'll get a fire going," said Gilan. "You should go get changed."

Alyx nodded gratefully and went into her room. She quickly rummaged through her few belongings before pulling out her last clean outfit. Unfortunately, it was all black and made out of leather, the trademark outfit of the guild she had been running from for the past two years of her life. Alyx quickly stuffed it back into the bottom of her pack, instead choosing to wear her dirty clothes, they didn't look or smell too bad she thought optimistically.

The girl untied her hair from the horsetail it had been in, scooped her soaked clothes off of the floor, and walked back out into the living room, making a beeline for the fire. She laid out the wet clothes so they could dry before disappearing back into her her room, reappearing moments later with her sword as well as the two knives Gilan had given her. Alyx drew her sword before sitting down in front of the crackling fire, feeling the warmth slowly chase the chill out of her bones as she began to run her whetstone down the edge of her blade.

Gilan appeared a few moments later with his own bundle of dripping clothing and laid them out in front of the fire to dry. After that, going to where he'd laid his bow and sword he brought them over to the fire and sat in one of the chairs beside Alyx, beginning to sharpen his own blade.

The two sat in a slightly uncomfortable silence, just listening to the rasping of stone on blade. Alyx had always like sharpening her sword it was soothing she thought.

Breaking the awkward silence, Gilan suggested that his apprentice should wax her bowstring, or it would start to fray.

Alyx nodded to show that she understood, swiped her whetstone a few more times down the blue tinged blade of her sword, gave it a rub with an oiled cloth to keep it from rusting, then sheathed it. She unfastened the buckle on her sword belt and quickly threaded the double scabbard for the two knives Gilan had given her onto the belt, then disappeared into her room to get her bow.

For the rest of the afternoon, Alyx and Gilan were stuck inside because of the rain; Gilan quizzed Alyx on her knowledge of Araluen history and geography. Alyx new very little about either of these things since she hadn't grown up in the country, but she didn't mind learning about them. Those two subjects had always been her favorite in the ward school.

For supper they had bread, cheese, and jerky again. Gilan said they would have to visit the market sometime tomorrow. Then -for lack of anything better to do- they threw daggers at a small target Gilan set up on the wall. It became a sort of contest between them to see who was better at throwing knives and in the end, Gilan won.

"You're very good with those daggers of yours," Gillan commented.

"Thank you," replied Alyx. "So are you."

Gilan nodded in thanks as well and both of them drifted into an, if not comfortable, companionable silence.

A few minutes later Gilan stood up, saying, "Well, I'm off to bed. I'll see you bright and early tomorrow morning, we have a busy day ahead of us." The Ranger half expected to hear his apprentice groan and complain, as he would have done at her age, but instead she just nodded in acceptance. The girl never stopped surprising him at every turn.

Standing up as well, Alyx bid Gilan goodnight and retreated to her own room, wondering what her craft master had planned for tomorrow.

* * *

_**Funny Quote:**_

When you're right, no one remembers. When you're wrong, no one forgets.

_Please review! Reviews are nice, and you know you want to._


	4. Dodger

Here ya go guys! Sorry it took so long, high school has been crazy! Enjoy! :)

_Disclamer: I don't own any of John Flanagan's work (duh)_

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Alyx sighed as she missed the target yet again. She was determined to become as skillful with a bow as Gilan was, but at this point, she was getting a bit discouraged. It had been two weeks since Gilan had accepted her as his apprentice and she still couldn't even hit the target consistently.

"Okay Alyx. I think that's enough practicing for now," said Gilan right behind her shoulder, making her jump in surprise.

"You really should try to be more aware," he criticized, never hesitating in catching her mistake. "If I was an enemy you would be dead right now."

Gilan was always joking and playing around, unless he was teaching. Then he was very serious and usually stern. It just went to show that he took his job and her safety very seriously, but it could be slightly disconcerting because he would be cheerful and smiling one moment and serious and almost stern the next.

The young apprentice sighed inwardly. "I understand," she replied wearily.

"Ah, your bow skills, or lack of them rather, are bothering you aren't they."

She nodded in reply.

"Don't worry," he said comfortingly. "You'll get it eventually; the bow was never my strong point either."

"Now," Gilan said after a slight pause. "Gather your arrows and follow me. I have a surprise for you."

"Is this a surprise I'll like?" Alyx asked cautiously. Lately his surprises had consisted of unpleasant tasks like scrubbing out the rain barrel, or picking up all the sticks in the yard.

"This one I think you'll like," he said with his customary grinning.

On the way to the surprise, Gilan quizzed Alyx on the various things he had taught her over the past few weeks. Once he was sure she had everything memorized by heart they both fell silent, just enjoying the cool shade of the forest.

After a while, they came up to a clearing with a small shack and corral in the middle of the forest. Alyx noticed there were two bay geldings in the small corral.

Gilan walked up to the old, rickety cabin and banged on the door. Soon enough a thin, leathery skinned man came out and nodded in greeting to the Ranger.

"Hello Marty," Gilan said politely.

Marty simply grunted in reply. When he caught sight of Alyx his eyebrows raised slightly.

"So, this is the young whelp Dodger will be taking care of," he said gruffly.

Alyx raised an eyebrow at being called a whelp, but otherwise said nothing.

"Ah yes," said Gilan. "This is my new apprentice, Alyx. Alyx this is Marty, one of the Ranger horse trainers."

"Well," said the crabby old horse trainer. "Now that we're through with that, let's go see if Dodger likes your apprentice."

Alyx's lips twitched in a hint of a smile as she followed the two men to the corral. When Gilan reached the fence the taller of the two horses immediately went up to him and nickered, nuzzling his shoulder in greeting.

"Alyx, I would like to introduce you to my horse, Blaze. And Blaze," said Gilan, turning to his horse with a sparkle of laughter in his eyes. "This is Alyx, my new apprentice."

When the Ranger finished his introductions the leggy bay horse wandered over to Alyx with his ears pricked, curiously sniffing her hands and pockets. Not finding any treats he butted his nose into Alyx's chest and sneezed, blowing snot all over her.

"Hey!" Alyx exclaimed with the first real smile the Ranger had ever seen on her face.

Gilan chuckled and said, "I think he likes you."

Even Marty's lips twitched slightly.

Ignoring the two men, Alyx turned her attention towards the other horse, who was disinterestedly munching on a mouthful of hay.

She clucked to him and held out her hand. He looked at her to see if she held any treats, when he saw her hand was empty he shook his head and snorted before turning back to the hay.

She rolled her eyes at the horse's behavior before turning to Marty.

"What's his favorite treat?"

"Carrots," he replied. Anticipating the young apprentice's next question he pointed toward a small crate slightly to her left.

Alyx retrieved a few of the treats and slid between the rough, wooden rails of the fence. She clucked to Dodger again and held out a carrot. This time he walked toward her with his ears pricked and greedily took the delicious orange vegetable from her hand.

While the horse was eating, Alyx ran a critical eye over him and liked what she saw. He was about fifteen hands tall and well proportioned, with nicely sloping shoulders, muscular hindquarters, and nicely bent hocks. She was willing to bet he had a comfortable gate and could keep up a steady pace all day. Looking into his warm chocolate colored eyes she saw they burned with an intelligence that was almost uncanny in an animal.

"Would you like to try him out?" asked Gilan with a gleam in his eyes that his apprentice did not like at all.

When Alyx gave her wary assent, Marty retrieved a rope halter from the small barn behind the corral and handed it to her. Dodger let himself be caught and walked docilely behind the girl into the barn.

"Good boy," Alyx said, giving him her last carrot before she started grooming him.

After tacking up Alyx led the horse out into the yard since the corral was too small to ride in. She checked the girth and swung easily up into the saddle, after adjusting her stirrups to the right length she gathered the reins and squeezed gently. Alyx immediately felt the horse tense under her and had just enough time to remember the odd gleam in Gilan's eyes before Dodger took off running and bucking.

Having been taken by surprise, she tumbled right over the horse's hindquarters and landed on her hands and knees.

Alyx sat there for a few moments, stunned, until she felt a warm nose nudge her side. She turned and saw the bay horse looking down at her quizzically, as if asking, "Now how did you get down there?"

The young apprentice almost smiled at her horse's expression as she used his neck to help her rise stiffly to her feet.

Gilan, she noticed, had a rather large, annoying grin on his face.

"What do you have to do to ride a Ranger horse?" Alyx asked her craft master, her face completely expressionless.

The Ranger wiped the grin off of his face, he had learned that when his apprentice hid her emotions she was usually angry. "All Ranger horses have a certain codeword you have to say before they let you ride them. Blaze's word, for instance, is brown eyes."

"Why do you have to say a codeword?" Alyx asked curiously.

Gilan explained that it kept Ranger horses from being stolen.

"Hmm," she said. "So what's Dodger's special word?"

"Dusty dog," Marty answered.

The tall girl raised an eyebrow at the decidedly odd phrase, but turned and said it to her horse anyway.

"Now try riding him," Gilan told his apprentice.

Alyx climbed warily back into the saddle and gently squeezed the horse again. This time he moved off at a sedate walk; Alyx inwardly gave a small sigh of relief, she didn't enjoy being thrown from a bucking horse.

She trotted and cantered him in circles and figure eights and discovered, somewhat delightedly, that he could do flying lead changes. He had lovely, smooth gates as well.

"Do you like him?" Gilan asked as his apprentice came to a halt beside him.

Alyx gave the barest hint of a smile and nodded. "He's very well trained," she said to the weathered old horse trainer.

Marty nodded his head in thanks at her compliment.

"Why don't you walk him out while I go tack up Blaze? My stomach is telling me it's almost time for lunch," the Ranger said, grinning.

Alyx rolled her eyes at her craft master who, when it came to food, seemed like a bottomless pit.

Later in the day, a white clad courier arrived, delivering the monthly reports from around the kingdom and leaving Alyx at loose ends for the rest of the evening. Since she hadn't been practicing her stretching exercises lately, she decided to do a few. Her muscles were stiff at the beginning but they soon warmed up. It felt good to do the calming exercises again. As she bent to put her head on her knees she noticed her horse looking at her quizzically from over the fence. She smiled at the strange expression on Dodger's face and stood up, walking over to give him some attention.

"I'm sorry but I don't have any carrots," Alyx told the horse when he sniffed her pockets. She smiled when her horse butted his head against her chest, she experimentally scratched Dodger on the large, diamond shaped star on his forehead. He closed his eyes and groaned in pleasure, pressing his head harder into Alyx's hand.

"Looks like I've found your sweet spot buddy," she said fondly. He snorted as if he was saying, 'What sweet spot? I don't have a sweet spot!' then turned back to his hay.

The young apprentice shook her head at her horse's attitude before turning and strolling back toward the house. As she was walking back toward the little cabin she was beginning to think of as home Alyx realized that, for the first time in a while, she was, if not happy, at least content.

* * *

_I refuse to answer that question on the grounds that I don't know the answer._

_**I am free of all prejudices. I hate everyone equally.**_

Remember, today is the tomorrow you worried about yesterday.

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Review and do your good deed for the day! Please?


	5. The Assignment

**A/N: **_Hey guys! I'm proud of myself, I actually updated pretty quickly. Sorry it's so short, but its better than nothing... My beta seems to have disappeared off the face of the earth so this one is unbeta-ed. If anyone catches any mistakes please point them out!_

_Happy Reading! :)_

* * *

For the next 3 months Alyx's life passed by in an unbroken routine: up before sunrise, stretching and agility exercises to keep her muscles in top condition, all before breakfast. Following a simple meal of coarse bread and dried fruits came drills in swordplay, archery, knife work, and stealth techniques.

Gilan's young apprentice was improving slowly but steadily, though she still had a long way to go before he would consider her skills at a level where she was more of a threat to others than to herself. She was a talented fighter and a quick learner, but the way she threw herself recklessly into their sword drills and took risks that no sane person would even think of doing frightened him slightly. It seemed to him as if she didn't care whether she lived or died, though it mattered greatly to him. Over the past months that Alyx had been apprenticed to him the Ranger had grown fond of his tight-lipped and sometimes quirky apprentice, as if she were the younger sibling he never had. Though it had taken a while, Alyx finally warmed up to him and Gilan discovered with some delight that his apprentice could, at times, be just as silly and cheerful as he himself. But other times she would be as grim and taciturn as Halt. He didn't really understand her and had been unable to glean any information about her past, which he was sure held the key to the puzzle that was his apprentice.

During a tracking lesson one wintry afternoon in November, Gilan gave his young apprentice her first real mission.

"Have you heard there will be an important visitor arriving at the castle tomorrow?" Gilan asked nonchalantly.

Alyx looked up from the tracks she was struggling to identify in the snow. "I've heard something about it." She replied. "Why?"

He shrugged, "No reason really. I just thought you might like to go on a little mission for me."

The young girl straightened all the way up in her saddle. "What sort of mission?" she asked; unsuccessfully trying to hide her curiosity from Gilan's sharp eyes.

The Ranger grinned. "I want you to gather as much information about our mystery guest as you can without being recognized. Then you can write me a formal report on your observations."

The young apprentice's shoulders sagged slightly at the word 'report'. There was nothing she despised more that writing a formal report on her actions or observations.

"Hm," said Alyx, pursing her lips in thought. "So I can use any method I want, as long as I get the information?"

Gilan nodded in assent, and then added as an afterthought, "that is, short of actually harming anyone."

Alyx raised one eyebrow in disbelief. "Of course," she replied. She was slightly offended that the Ranger thought she would injure someone for such a trivial reason.

"Oh, and one more thing before we get back to our lesson," Gilan said. "Come early spring we'll attend something called a Gathering. It's a time when all the Rangers in the kingdom converge for one week to discuss the goings on in their respective fiefs." He paused to let his young apprentice digest this information before continuing. "For your part, you'll join in competitions with other apprentices, pitting your skills against theirs. The most senior Rangers conspire throughout the year to create the tests you'll undergo. They pride themselves on concocting elaborate situations specifically designed to skunk all but the wiliest apprentices. Only the top competitors will be allowed to move on in their studies and to receive the bronze oak leaf of a Ranger's apprentice. This year you will be tested on unseen movement dagger throwing, archery, and hand to hand combat. "

"Okay," she said slowly after a rather long pause.

"I know it's a lot to take in," said Gilan sympathetically.

Alyx grunted. "You couldn't have waited to tell me about this gathering until _after_ I'd completed my mission?" she asked.

The Ranger looked slightly sheepish and shrugged uncomfortably.

Sighing, Alyx rolled her eyes at her craft master's antics before once again turning her attention toward the ground, pushing all other thoughts to the back of her mind for the time being. It seemed as if she would have a busy next couple of months to looks forward to.

* * *

**Quotes:**

_**I don't have an attitude problem. You have a perception problem.**_

_**Live so that you wouldn't be ashamed to sell the family parrot to the town gossip.**_

_**If the shoe fits... buy it in every color.**_

_Now you guys know what to do! Just press that little green button over there and make my day for me! Please?_

_Also, I have almost completely rewritten the second chapter, so if you guys want to understand whats coming up in the next chapter or two I suggest your re-read it..._

_One last thing, I'm kind of having trouble coming up with challenging and funny 'tests' for the Rangers to test the apprentices with, so if any of you have any ideas I would really appreciate any suggestions!_

Thanks!


	6. Fickle Fate part 1

_Merry Christmas! This is your present from me to you... please don't hate me... you'll find out why later... hehe... I am sooo evil!_

**Disclaimer: JF owns all... except for the things i made up... of course...**

* * *

A young maid stood, polishing the silver and minding her own business in the main entryway of Meric Castle. Suddenly the baron's secretary, an entourage of knights, a few of the lesser nobles and their ladies proceeded noisily through the room. The maid quickly dipped into a deep curtsy and held it until everyone had passed out into the courtyard.

_Probably going to meet our new guest, _she thought; not without some curiosity.

The girl discovered she was right in her assumption when a tall, blond haired knight walked through the main doors next to the secretary; followed by swooning maidens, jealous young lords and admiring knights.

The tall maid realized she was staring and hurriedly folded into a curtsy, angling her head in such a way that she could study the young, travel dusted knight as he proceeded across the floor she had just swept clean.

Just as the last lady was about to pass she caught notice of Alyx, still dipped into a curtsy. "You there! Maid!" She called in a shrill, unpleasant voice. "Go to my suite and fetch my fan. Quickly now, before the Oakleaf Knight slips out of my grasp!"

Alyx didn't miss the purring tone the lady had adopted when she mentioned the young knight's title and schooled her features into coy obeisance, masking the disgust on her face. Earlier, when the lady had been walking out to greet the Oakleaf Knight she had been hanging on the arm of a handsome young nobleman; practically drooling on him.

"Yes, my lady,"Alyx replied shyly; dipping into a shallow curtsy.

Since the young apprentice had no clue who the featherbrained lady was she searched the nearest ladies' room. Grabbing the first fan she could find. She hoped the annoying lady wouldn't notice it wasn't her fan.

"What? This is not my fan you insolent little cur!"

Alyx winced at the high pitched shrieking.

"I-I-I'm sorry, miss!" She squeaked, her eyes glued to the floor; trying her best to sound terrified. Alyx didn't know how much more of this lady's behavior she could take before she gave her a well deserved beating.

"Why you little!..." The lady drew back her hand and struck Alyx with the fan, hard enough to break it. "How dare you talk back to me!"

Alyx lifted her hand to her face, it came away slick with blood. The young apprentice felt an icy rage build within her. It took all of the her self control to not break the little shrew's arm right then and there, and maybe a few other bones while she was at it.

"Now," said shrew lady in a tone that suggested she was talking to a simpleton. "I want you to go to my rooms and get _my _fan. Do you understand? _Mine._"

Alyx gritted her teeth. "Yes, my lady."

Unfortunately, she let her anger and disgust show in her voice, which resulted in another hearty slap from the shrew lady.

"What is going on here?" Asked a deceptively calm voice.

The lady quickly spun around and almost fainted at the sight of the furious knight behind her.

"I-I-I..." She cleared her throat and adopted what she thought was a purring, seductive tone. "I mean Sir Horace, I was just putting this insolent maid in her place."

"By beating her to death, Lady Pricilla?" the roguishly handsome knight asked; his displeasure clear.

The lady puffed herself up to her full height, which was not very impressive seeing as she only came up to Sir Horace's chest. "If that's what it takes," she said pompously.

The young knight slowly drew in a deep breath before answering. "Go," he said simply.

"But..."

"I said _leave_."

At the knight's tone Lady Pricilla practically fell over her own feet trying to get out of the room.

Horace watched her go for a few seconds before turning back to the maid, who was still standing before him. He noted with some interest, that the young girl's face had hardened uncharacteristically for a servant, and her eyes held a dangerous glint in them. One he was used to seeing in Halt's, or any other Ranger's eyes, not in a young girl of fourteen or fifteen.

Alyx noticed the knight was watching her and quickly re-schooled her features into the coy demeanor of a maid. Quite a feat considering one eye was colored with a vivid bruise and starting to swell, and the other side of her face was covered in blood.

"Why don't you go get yourself cleaned up," Horace suggested kindly, and even though he hated to ask it of her, he wanted to know more about this strange girl. "And then could you bring some coffee up to the baron's office?"

At his words the maid paled slightly and swayed as if the ground were unsteady under her feet.

"On second thought," said Horace, grabbing the girl's arm to keep her steady. "Why don't you just send someone up." The knight decided he would have to find out more about her later, when she felt better.

The girl gave an almost inaudible sigh of relief and mumbled, "Yes, I think that would be better."

As soon as Alyx rounded the corner she dropped her facade of light-headedness and sighed in relief. She had just narrowly missed being discovered, since the baron would undoubtedly remember her.

Hearing footsteps, Alyx quickly lowered her eyes to the floor and hurriedly walked toward the kitchen to clean up before going back home. Remembering at the last minute to send some coffee up to the baron's office.

–

"Sir Horace," said Baron Aidan pleasantly as the knight entered his office. "I had not been told that you were coming. Will you be spending the night?" He asked, getting right to the point.

Horace had the grace to look slightly embarrassed.

"No, I won't stay long. I was in the neighborhood and decided to stop by and visit an old friend."

"Oh, then I won't keep you," said Baron Aidan good naturedly.

"Thank you, my lord. Though there is one thing, could you please tell me where Ranger Gilan's cabin is?"

"Why certainly," replied the baron. "Go due south out of the village for a good three miles and you'll find it at the edge of the Western Wood."

Horace thanked the baron and wished him a good day before quickly walking down to the courtyard and his waiting horse; he was anxious to see Gilan again after so many years.

–

Horace found the little cabin with no trouble. He tied Kicker to the hitching post out front and stumped up to the little cabin, banging rather loudly on the door.

Gilan answered on the third knock. "Good afternoon Horace," he said, grinning. "Why don't you come in and warm yourself by the fire."

"Thanks," said Horace, studying the Ranger carefully. So far he had found no hint of surprise at his sudden visit.

"Would you like some coffee?" Gilan asked pleasantly and before the young knight could answer he said, "It'll take a minute though."

"You know, you don't seem a bit surprised at my sudden visit." Horace commented after he had thawed out his hands.

The young Ranger paused in making the coffee and shrugged. "That's because I'm not."

Horace raised his eyebrows at that. "You mean you expected me to come?"

Gilan grinned mischievously and nodded.

"But how?" asked the slightly dumbfounded knight. "I didn't even know I was coming myself until a few days ago."

"We Rangers have our ways," replied Gilan, a gleam of laughter in his eyes.

Horace shook his head at his friend's antics.

"I'm going to tend to Kicker," he said, walking out into the bitter cold of winter once more.

Just as he was about to turn his faithful horse out into the paddock Horace heard a rather large thump behind him. He spun around, surprised by the noise, and froze. For there, standing in front of him, was the maid from the castle, her legs covered with the water she had presumably been carrying in a bucket that was now lying at her feet.

"You?" They both exclaimed at the same time.

Out of the corner of her eye Alyx noted a flicker of the drapes, presumably Gilan watching to see how she would react to his latest trick.

The young apprentice was the first to regain her composure. "If you'll excuse me, Sir knight," she said politely as she began walking toward the cabin.

"Very funny, Gilan." She said upon arriving inside.

"What?" He asked in a tone that was just too innocent.

"Oh, don't give me that. You very well know what I'm talking about."

"Don't give you what?" the Ranger replied with a devilish glint in his eyes.

Gilan's young apprentice rolled her eyes and made a sound of disgust.

"How, out of all the Ranger's in the kingdom, did I get apprenticed to a character like you!" She said in annoyance before stalking into her room to change out of her wet clothes.

"Oh, lighten up Alyx!" He called after her. "You know you love it!"

Horace walked in just as Gilan called the last sentence after his retreating apprentice.

"Gilan," the knight said with an odd look on his face. "Who is Alyx?"

"She's my apprentice," he replied. "Though right now I think she wishes she wasn't."

The young knight let out a small sigh of relief, that didn't go unnoticed by the Ranger, before asking, "Why is that?"

Gilan snorted as he sat down opposite his friend and handed him a cup of coffee.

"Beats me. In my time as her craft master I have learned that the female, especially the young female, is a completely illogical and inexplicable creature."

Horace had to struggle to keep from snorting coffee out of his nose he was laughing so hard.

"What?" Gilan asked. "It's true!"

"Oh, I know it's true," said Horace once he stopped laughing. "The funny thing is that you just figured this out."

The Ranger smiled and rolled his eyes. "Alright, alright. You've had your fun." He suddenly got a sly look on his face that Horace did not like at all.

"So, how are things going with Evanlyn?" He commented.

"What? How did you?..."

Gilan held up his hand to forestall any questions and simple pointed to himself, saying, "Ranger."

"Hmph," grunted Horace. Leaning back and sipping his coffee contentedly.

A few minutes later Alyx walked out, carrying a parchment that she placed in front of Gilan. Then without a word, she grabbed her cloak and walked outside. Presumably to finish whatever she was doing in the first place.

"That's odd." Said the Ranger. "She usually never stays angry this long."

Horace grunted. "It's probably PMS, or something."

Gilan gave him an odd look. "What is PMS?"

The knight shrugged. "I don't know. Whenever Evanlyn has strange moods she always sums it up to PMS. Though she wouldn't tell me what it was."

–

A few hours later it was getting dark, and Alyx still hadn't returned. Gilan watched anxiously out the window, hoping to catch sight of his wayward apprentice but unfortunately, he was disappointed. Dodger, Gilan noted, was getting impatient too. He kept pacing back and forth along the far end of the corral, where he'd last seen his master disappear into the forest.

After another few minutes of pacing, Gilan finally got tired of waiting. He grabbed his cloak and weapons, quickly strapping them on. Horace, following the Ranger's lead, got ready to leave as well.

"Do you know where she might be?" the knight asked.

"She was getting water from a nearby stream when I last saw her. So that's where we'll start first."

"Do you want to take the horses?"

"No," Gilan said. "It'll take too long to saddle them."

Horace nodded.

After a few minutes of trudging through the snow the two men arrived at the stream. They found Alyx's bucket, but no sign of the girl herself. From there Gilan easily followed her tracks through the snow. After about a minute of walking they came to a heavily trampled area in the forest. There was blood staining the churned snow, and in the center of it lay Alyx; with something huge and furry lying nearly on top of her.

"Oh no." Gilan said quietly.

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_Alright, I know it's a cliffie but I promise the next chapter will be out soon... buuutttttt... if I don't get 10 reviews for this chapter I just might delay the posting date for chapter seven...;P so that means review and make my Christmas wonderful!_

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**Quotes:**

There are some friends you know you will have for the rest of your life.

You're welded together by love, trust, respect, loss- or simple embarrassment. (sigh... how true...)

**There are moments when everything goes well, but don't be frightened, it won't last.**


	7. Fickle Fate part 2

**A/N:** _Hey guys! Ain't I quick? I know I didn't get ten reviews... but I got eight and I was so excited when I finished this so early that I just had to post it! Haha:) Thank you so much for all of your lovely reviews! They're so encouraging! Also, Mossmoon has suggested that I add more detail into my chapters so that's what I tried to do and I was wondering if I succeeded or failed. Added too much, too little? So I would really appreciate it if you mentioned it in your review. Thanks! :)_

**Happy Reading!**

* * *

Gilan ran to his fallen apprentice and dropped to his knees beside her, checking for a pulse. He gave a small sigh of relief when he found one. Though faint, it was better than nothing.

"Is she?..." Horace trailed off, his brow furrowed with worry.

"She's alive." Gilan replied to the knight's question; the relief plain in his voice.

Once he had confirmed that his apprentice was still living Gilan began surveying her injuries. There were several serious bite marks on her body and one arm was bent at an unnatural angle. It also appeared that she had lost a lot of blood. But other than that there didn't appear to be anything life threatening.

"Gilan!" Horace called urgently. "You better come see this."

The Ranger took off his mottled cloak and gently covered Alyx with it before going over to Horace, who was studying the large wolf his apprentice had killed. There were several of Alyx's daggers buried deep into it's chest, all clustered into a group the size of a small tea plate. There was also a dagger buried in it's eye, but apparently the girl had to slit it's throat before it finally died.

"What is it?"

"Look closely at it's eyes and muzzle." Horace answered simply.

Gilan studied the animal again with a growing feeling of dread. There wasn't much to go by, but there was froth around the wolf's mouth and it's lifeless eyes still held a crazed gleam in them.

"Rabies." The Ranger said in a hollow voice. He didn't know much about healing but he did know that no cure had been found for rabies.

"That would explain it's appearance and why it wasn't with it's pack." Horace said, he sighed and gripped his friend's shoulder. "I'm sorry Gilan."

The Ranger closed his eyes for a brief moment. When he re-opened them they held a steely determination.

"There must be something the healer can do." He spun around. "Horace, I want you to run ahead and saddle Blaze, I'll carry Alyx back."

The knight nodded and began jogging back down the path. He knew it was hopeless, but if it would make Gilan feel better, he was willing to try.

"Come on, Alyx." Gilan said as he gently picked her up and began making his way back to the cabin. "Just hold on a little longer," he told her battered, limp form; the Ranger's voice held a touch of desperation.

When he arrived back at the cabin Gilan had both Blaze and Kicker saddled and ready to go. Dodger saw his master lying unconscious in the Ranger's arms, smelled the blood, wolf, and rabies on her and neighed piteously.

Gilan passed his apprentice to Horace so he could climb onto Blaze before taking her up in front of him. He took the reins in one hand and kept the other firmly wrapped around Alyx's stomach, trying to jostle her as little as possible. Blaze seemed to realized something was wrong and took the extra burden without even a twitch of his ears.

Dodger saw his master being taken away from him again and nearly went ballistic, he began rearing and galloping back and forth along the fence line, whinnying in anger and distress.

"Let him out Horace." The Ranger said, his face and voice unreadable.

Gilan saw a flash of surprise on the knight's face but he did not question his friend. As soon as Dodger saw the open gate, he took off after Blaze, running full speed. Horace quickly mounted and followed after Gilan, who had sent Blaze off at a steady canter.

–

A few minutes later the strange party arrived in the village, drawing quite a bit of attention. Upon arriving at the Healer's house, Gilan jumped off of Blaze and pulled Alyx down after him.

"Could you tend to the horses, Horace?" he called over his shoulder. Not even waiting for the knight's response before he began banging on the door hard enough to wake the dead.

"I'm coming, I'm coming!" Called a muffled voice from inside. "Hold your horses!"

A stooped old lady answered the door in a nightgown and cap, holding up a lantern to get a better view of her late night visitors. Her shrewd little eyes immediately took in the Ranger, the wounded girl in his arms, and the loose horse standing so close to the Ranger's back that he must be dripping snot down the man's neck.

"Well, don't just stand there like a toad on a log! Bring her in!" The little lady scolded.

Gilan didn't hesitate in obeying the Healer's orders. When he stepped in his eyes began watering as he was hit with a wave of strong smells. He squinted to try and see better in the light and identified that the aroma was coming from all of the different herbs hanging from the ceiling to dry.

"Put her over there." The Healer said, pointing to a small, comfortable looking cot along the left wall of the apothecary.

"Not you! Out, out, out!" The little lady yelled, grabbing something that appeared to be a broom, hoisting it over her head and running at poor Dodger, who had tried to squeeze through the door after his master. He quickly backed up and shook his mane- in what Gilan imagined as a slightly offended gesture- and contented himself with poking his head through the window at the foot of Alyx's bed.

"I'm assuming there's more wrong with her than just a few bite marks," the lady prompted, acting like nothing odd had just happened at all.

"Yes," Gilan answered, once he'd recovered slightly from the strange little lady's charge. "She was bitten by a rabid wolf."

A pained expression crossed the old Healer's, weathered features. "Lad..." she began.

"I know there's nothing you can do, but just try. Please."

She sighed. "I'll see what I can do, Ranger."

–

The old Healer who's name, Gilan discovered was Mabel, stayed up all through the night nurturing Alyx, doing her best to keep her alive. She didn't tell Gilan that his apprentice was doing surprisingly well for someone who had been bitten by a rabid animal. She didn't want to get his hopes up but, if the girl didn't start showing more signs of being bitten by an infected animal, the Healer thought she had a very good chance of surviving this ordeal.

Gilan eventually fell asleep in a chair at the foot of his apprentice's cot, near Dodger's head, and Horace was snoring quietly on a stool in the far corner of the cottage. The Ranger awoke a few hours later to the warmth of a mid-morning sun shining on his face, temporarily dazzling him so he had to squint to see. He stood up, rubbed his eyes and stretched, easing the stiffness in his muscles from sleeping in the hard, uncomfortable chair.

"Good morning sleepy head," said a familiar voice from somewhere in front of him. It sounded a lot like Alyx's voice, but that couldn't be, thought Gilan.

The Ranger stepped out of the sunlight so he could see, once his eyes adjusted to the dimmer light of the Healer's apothecary he saw that indeed it was his apprentice that had spoken. Though he didn't know how that was possible. As far as he knew rabies was incurable.

"But... How?" The slightly bewildered Ranger asked; striding over to stand next to Alyx's bed to make sure he wasn't just dreaming.

"Well," began Alyx. "Apparently the healers where I come from have slightly more advanced medicine, because I've already had rabies and been cured of it. And once you've had it you can never get it again." She explained all in one breath, slumping down in the cot slightly as if her speech had exhausted her. As a matter of fact, Gilan didn't think he'd ever heard her say that many words together in one sentence before.

"So this means..." said Gilan, but Alyx interrupted him before he could continue.

"That I'll live? Of course it does you big oaf. I hope I didn't disappoint you." The last sentence was said with an extremely sarcastic air which Gilan was oddly reassured to hear. It meant that his apprentice was feeling like her old self, at least on the inside. On the outside she looked like death itself what with her hair straggling around her pallid face, tangled in knots, and deep, black circles under her eyes that only emphasized her paleness.

The silence that followed was punctuated every few seconds with Horace's snores, bringing a smile to Gilan's face and even making Alyx's lips turn up slightly in a small smile.

"I'll have to keep her for another day or so," said Mabel from somewhere in the back of the small, badly lit house. Her voice was quickly followed by her bent, weathered body. Though Gilan noted that she moved with more ease than her stooped figure suggested was possible. "To make sure she doesn't catch pneumonia or some such sickness or get her wounds infected. But since we've established that she will most probably live, I would appreciate it if you would stop crowding my house. It's small enough already without you two getting under my feet." She stated in no uncertain terms. Making a vague gesture that encompassed the Ranger and the still sleeping knight in the corner. "And that horse simply must go!" She said, pointing a knobby finger at Dodger, who's head was still in the window. He seemed to realize that the old Healer was talking about him and snorted, rolling his eyes slightly at her.

"As you wish madam." Gilan replied politely. "I would hate to overstay my welcome."

Mabel snorted. "You already have," she replied caustically.

The corner of the Ranger's mouth pulled up slightly in a smile but he made no comment, instead going to wake Horace. "It's time to leave," he told the groggy knight.

Horace shook his head to clear it from the cobwebs of sleep. "How is Alyx?" He asked immediately.

Gilan smiled. "She's going to be okay."

A perplexed look crossed the knight's face at that comment, but when he looked over his friend's shoulder and saw Alyx apparently alive and, well... alive in the cot he shrugged. Deciding to save his questions for later.

As the two men strode out into the early morning sunshine Mabel called after them, saying that she required payment. Gilan raised his hand to acknowledge that he'd heard her before calling out to Dodger to follow him. The horse simply ignored the Ranger standing steadfastly in his master's window. Her horse's loyalty warmed Alyx's heart but she signaled to him to follow her craft master, smiling slightly. At first it seemed as if Dodger would ignore his young master as well, but when Gilan and Horace rode past he reluctantly left the window and follow them.

Alyx sighed as she watched them leave and laid back in her bed, wriggling around under the covers until she found a comfortable spot. Soon after that she fell into a deep peaceful sleep while her body began the long process of repairing itself. The sarcastic, but kind hearted Healer watched her as closely as a mother bear over it's cub.

A few of the villager's stopped by to get a glimpse of the fabled girl Ranger but none stayed long, mostly because Mabel watched them with her broom clutched in her hands like a weapon. Her black, hawk-like eyes boring into them as if she could peer into their very souls, making the few who dared step into crazy old Mabel's Healing shop without a medically related emergency extremely uncomfortable.

* * *

_Alright, tell me what you guys think! Did I add enough detail? Also, the next chapter might be a while in coming since I'm going to be pretty busy these next couple of weeks... just so you guys know... :) One last thing. I think the name for this story is pretty... well, I'm just going to say dumb. I don't think it really relates to the story at all so, I was wondering if any of you guys had suggestions for a new name... let me know what you come up with! :)_

* * *

**Quotes:**

There are people who make things happen, those who watch what happens, and those who wonder what happened.

**I bet that Van Gogh guy cut off his ear by accident and made up that "lost love" story so he wouldn't look stupid.**

_Sign posted in a cafeteria:_ _"Shoes are required to eat in the cafeteria. Socks can eat an place they want."_


	8. Dreams

_A/N: Hey guys! I don't have much to say except for thank you to all of my reviewers and enjoy the chapter! (I'm sorry it's a bit short...)_

_Happy Reading!_ :)

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"Now you make sure gets lots of sleep, hear!" Mabel ordered tartly. "Lots and lots of it. And make sure she stays off the dratted horse of hers! Heaven knows he'd probably throw her off and trample her just for fun."

Dodger seemed to understand what the Healer was saying and glared at her, laying his ears back slightly.

"And remember to give the girl her medicine young man. Do I need to come over there to check and see if you're following my instructions? Because I will!"

Gilan interrupted as respectfully as he could before the overbearing Healer could continue on her tirade. "I promise on my honor that I will follow your instructions to the letter." The Ranger hadn't realized that in coming to pick up his apprentice the old Healer would hound him like the devil himself.

He could see Alyx grinning slightly at him from behind Dodger, who had immediately stepped between his master and the crazy old lady who seemed to think so little of him. Thinking he was doing the young apprentice a favor by protecting her. Alyx patted her horse lovingly before asking, "But how am I supposed to get home if I can't ride my horse?" Surely it would be better to ride than to walk all the way."

Mabel seemed to be stumped by that question. After thinking about it for a bit she finally relented. "Alright, you can ride him back to that dingy old shack you call a cabin, but _only_ to there, no more after that. Understand?"

Alyx nodded. "Yes, of course." She was just barely containing the smile that threatened to break out all over her face. None of them knew it but Mabel reminded Alyx of another healer from what seemed like a millennium ago to the young apprentice but was only eight years past in reality. She had the same grumpy, overbearing manner that hid beneath it a heart as soft and kind as could be.

"Now be off with you! And I don't want to hear about any more accidents," Mable turned her burning gaze to the Ranger. "Understand?" She asked threateningly.

Gilan raised his hands in the universal gesture of surrender and took a step back. "Clear as a whistle," he said; adopting a hurt tone of voice at the thought of how little the Healer trusted him. Though Alyx noted that there was a familiar gleam in his eyes. One that signified he was containing his laughter, at least for now.

An hour or so later, asleep in her bed, Alyx began to dream...

"_Come on Anna! I heard there 're good pickin's down of Peachtree Way! The nobles young uns are goin' out for a stroll and you know 'ow easy 'tis to pick them rich brats' pockets!"_

_Anna rolled her eyes at the scruffy, dark eyed boy before her; she was stalling for time. Rokko had never led her astray before but there was always a first for everything. Since she was a street child and he was employed on some grand ship or other Anna could never entirely trust him. He could turn her in to the Guard at any time for thieving or other various petty crimes. It did not occur to the young girl that if he turned her in it would he would also be admitting to his thievery as well. Since whenever his ship made port in Mikasa he made a bee line for the lower city streets, knowing he would find Anna there somewhere. It was no great secret that the young powder monkey spent all of his time on land with the young street girl. _

_But even if Anna knew this she still would never entirely trust the poor, lovestruck boy. There was a general rule among the orphans of the lower city streets to never trust anyone, not even each other. That rule had kept her alive for all of her years living on the streets so she saw no reason to abandon it. The ones that were too trusting or not smart enough to learn to steal to support themselves always disappeared quickly, never to be seen again. It was a cruel, bitter way of life but some people, like Anna, had no choice. _

"_Well, are ya comin' 're aren't ya!" Rokko called impatiently, stamping his foot in the street muck. _

_Anna had a bad feeling in the pit of her stomach, but she couldn't pass up the opportunity of picking gold from an unsuspecting little brat's pocket. One of the bright spots in her life was seeing the haughty looks on the faces of the noble's sons and daughters melt into outrage and surprise at finding they had been robbed blind. _

"_Ar'right! Hold yer horses! I'm comin'!" She yelled back at him. _

_The young waif followed her companion toward the rich end of town. Unfortunately for her, she was so busy daydreaming about all the food she would buy with her stolen money that she forgot one of the most important rules of the street. Always, always, always be aware of everything around you._

_Rokko was ahead of her and Anna didn't notice the snarling in the dark alley she was passing until it was too late. Just as she began to run a large, furry brown body launched itself at her, knocking her to the ground. She cracked her head on the cobble stones so hard that everything went black for a few moments. When the young girl awoke she scrambled to her feet and tried to run but immediately fell back down in an ungraceful heap. There was no point anyway she thought, it was too late and she had already been bitten. After a few moments of lying in the dirt the young girl wondered why the rabid dog wasn't still attacking her and looked around. She was surprised to see it lying on the ground beside her with a dagger inserted neatly into its eye socket. Just as the dark oblivion of unconsciousness began to claim her, Anna felt strong but surprisingly gentle arms gather her off of the street. She only had enough time to struggle weakly against her rescuer before everything went black. Her last thought was of how she would finally get to see her family again. _

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_**Just to clarify something Anna is the same person as Alyx... just to avoid confusion.**_

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_Quotes:_

If it weren't for STRESS, I wouldn't have any energy at all.

**Incompetence. When you earnestly believe you can make up for a lack of skill by doubling your effort, there's no end to what you can't do. **

_I am better than I was but not quite so good as I was before I got worse._


	9. Gilan's Idea

**A/N:** _Hey guys I'm really sorry I haven't updated in a while. I suffer from a very bad disease called procrastination lol. Anyways, I hope you guys like it!_

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As the weeks wore slowly on Alyx began to regain her health, though it was never fast enough for the young apprentice. The forced inactivity was driving her literally insane. She had cleaned Gilan's cabin until it was spotless, reorganized the mystery closet, shined all of the pots and pans until they were positively gleaming, and brushed Dodger until his coat shone. After that she took to pacing, or sitting around and sulking. Both activities that set Gilan's teeth on edge until one day he finally couldn't take it anymore.

"Will you quit that infernal pacing!" He ordered. "Its driving me completely insane! If you keep it up you're going to wear a hole in the floor!"

Alyx simply grunted, threw herself into a chair and sat there, completely expressionless. Which, Gilan surmised, was the closet she would ever get to openly sulking.

The Ranger stood up and began making his way toward the door to get a break from his apprentice's morose attitude when a wicked idea came to him. One that would get Alyx out of the cabin and doing something other than moping about all day. Also she might learn something useful in the process.

He whirled around and had literally opened his mouth to state his idea when Alyx cut him off.

"When will we leave for the Gathering?" she inquired.

Gilan stared at her for a moment, "What?" he asked. Alyx's impromptu question had caught him off guard. Considering the rather bearish manner the young apprentice had adopted over the past few weeks that string of words was a veritable speech coming from her.

She raised an eyebrow, "You heard me."

A reply which inevitably reminded Gilan of his old master, Halt. As a matter of fact, the more he thought about it the more the Ranger realized that Alyx's mannerisms were a lot like the legendary Ranger's. A thought that was slightly disturbing to the young man since he considered one Halt in the world more than enough to compensate.

Gilan furrowed his brow in puzzlement, he was trying to understand why his apprentice had asked an apparently random question, Alyx was not known for being random. "We leave in three weeks," He stated. Then suddenly it all became clear to him.

"You're worried you won't be healed in time for the Gathering aren't you." He stated, the reason for his apprentice's rudeness over the past few weeks becoming clear to him.

Alyx nodded curtly in response. The only reason why she hadn't asked this before was because the young girl didn't want to sound like she was whining. One thing Alyx absolutely could not stand in people was whining so she was always careful to avoid doing it herself. Unfortunately she was sometimes so cautious in avoiding it that when something was wrong or needed to be said she would keep it to herself so as not to sound like a complainer.

Gilan bit his lip, he didn't know why he hadn't seen it earlier. He felt a little sorry for the young girl, it really was atrocious luck, being injured so close to the Gathering. Which was something she had to have been worrying about already considering she was the only girl and would have a lot to prove before she was really accepted as a Ranger.

"I admit, it will be close but," he said. "I think you will be able to participate in the Gathering without too much trouble."

Alyx looked gratefully at Gilan, she knew she had been a pain and yet he still tried to comfort her. That was more than she would have done if their positions had been reversed.

"Okay." Alyx wasn't completely convinced she would be better in time, but Gilan's reassurance did help a little. "Thanks."

Gilan gave his young apprentice a small, encouraging smile. "You're welcome." Once he had gotten to know Alyx the Ranger had discovered that, past all of her gruffness, she really was just a normal teenager. As a matter of fact he was growing quite fond of her, she was almost like a little sister to him. Something he wasn't sure was necessarily a good thing for a master to feel for his apprentice, he had always heard it wasn't a good idea to get too attached to your apprentice. He didn't really know why, but he had a guess that it was because a lot of Ranger apprentice's don't last to their graduation. They either run away or are killed in action.

"You were about to say something?" Alyx inquired.

The Ranger was startled out of his reverie by her sudden question. He raised his eyebrows slightly, "What?" he asked, puzzled.

The corners of Alyx's mouth twitched up in a small smile, Gilan's expression was rather comical with his always slightly rumpled hair falling in his eyes and look of total bewilderment on his face.

"Before I interrupted you, you were about to say something."

Gilan pursed his lips in thought, which just served to make him look even funnier.

"Oh!" he exclaimed. "I had an idea that would keep you occupied and out of the house. And you might learn something useful from the experience." Alyx noted a familiar gleam was coming back into his eyes. One that she was beginning to fear. The last time Gilan had looked like that she ended up face first in a mud bog. It took her forever to get all the mud out of her nose and ears, not to mention her clothes.

"Lovely," Alyx said unenthusiastically, distinctly remembering the mud bog incident. She went to cross her arms but winced instead as her broken arm protested. She still wasn't quite used to not using her left arm.

The Ranger grinned. "Yes it really is. You're doing nothing productive sitting around the cabin moping, so I thought it would be good for you to work for Mabel. It will get you out of the house and you might learn something useful from the experience as well." Gilan was rather proud of himself, it really was a brilliant idea in his opinion.

The young apprentice shrugged. "Sounds like a good idea to me." Inwardly Alyx was relieved, she kind of liked Mabel. True the healer was grouchy and bossy but if you looked past all that Alyx thought she had a kind heart. You just had to look through all of the yelling and threatening with that blasted broom of hers.

"When do I start?"

"Well," Gilan said, slightly surprised his apprentice seemed so eager about his idea. "We can go over there right now and see if it's okay with Mabel."

An hour or so later they returned just as the sun was setting, Gilan whistling a happy tune and Alyx just being her normal, unsmiling self. The young apprentice would start work for Mabel bright and early the next morning.

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**Quotes:**

We can't all be heroes because someone has to sit on the curb and clap as they go by.

**Everything is changing. People are taking the comedians seriously and the politicians as a joke.**

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_Okaayyy just press that little review button and make my day! lol_


	10. On the Way

_Hey guys, I want to apologize for how long this took. This chapter has been in the making for a long while now but I just never got around to it, so here's my late Christmas present to you all. Thanks to all my faithful reviewers who have stuck with me through this, even though I'm not exactly the most frequent updater!_

_:)_

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"No, no, no, no, no! How many times do I have to tell you the rosemary goes over here and the lemon grass there! Now go fix it. It's a good thing for you you're hurt or I'd whack you with my broom!" Mabel gave a long suffering sigh before shuffling off into the front of her little shop.

Alyx wearily began to fix her mistake. It had been almost two weeks since she had started working for the grumpy healer but it almost seemed like two years. Mabel kept her running constantly, not giving her a minutes break. The young girl was definitely not averse to hard work but by the end of the first week she was completely exhausted.

The young apprentice was learning a lot under Mabel's tutelage but she had no idea that being a Healer was such a complicated job. There were so many plants that had to be memorized; you had to know the exact shape, texture, color, and height of each species; and just to make things harder Mother Nature had to create other poisonous plants that looked exactly like the good plants. Alyx had made the mistake of gathering a type of plant that left her hands red and itchy for a week. Her clothes were also paying the price of her new job. Mabel often sent her trekking out into remote areas searching for a specific type of plant, areas that just so happened to be full of briars or raspberry bushes. She usually couldn't even find the herb Mabel had sent her out to get, it was really rather frustrating.

When Alyx got her sling off at the beginning of the second week Mabel quickly put her to work with a mortar and pestle, grinding up plants and roots. The old healer told her it would speed up the recovering of strength in her arm. Grinding up the herbs and roots was hard work but Alyx could tell it was paying off; it felt like her arm was getting stronger every day.

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Soon enough the two weeks were up and it was time to leave for the Gathering. Gilan wouldn't tell his apprentice exactly where they were going. When she asked he used his most mysterious voice, saying, "It's a secret, if I told you I would have to kill you." Alyx simply rolled her eyes at the Ranger's antics and rode on in silence, sometimes he could act so much like a child it was easy to forget he was older than she was.

"You really should loosen up," Gilan said in pompous tone. "It is bad for the soul to be so serious all the time. Why even my old mentor Halt, perhaps the grimmest most taciturn figure in the entire world, would unbend and crack a smile sometimes!"

Alyx had to fight to keep from grinning, instead saying in her most sarcastic tone, "Well then, since you are such an expert on souls and their upkeep, or apparent lack thereof, and you seem to care so much about mine, do something to make me laugh. Lighten my heart and save my poor dying soul."

"Oh my lady!" Gilan cried, holding his fist over his heart to add to the dramatics, "I beg thee not to lay such a futile quest on my poor wretched self! Ask me for a piece of the moon and I shall sprout wings to get it for you! Ask for a drop of sunlight and I will command the sun to give up a piece of its glorious splendor! Ask me for the fleeting west wind and I will catch it in a jar and lay it at your feet, anything but the task of making thy grim countenance break into merriment!"

Alyx didn't even deign to reply to her master's tirade; instead she turned to her trusty horse and asked, "How did we get such a crackpot as our mentor?" Dodger snorted and shook his mane as if in reply. The young apprentice sighed, "I don't know either."

By nightfall Alyx had picked out a suitable campsite and both the Ranger and his apprentice were bustling around pleasantly, gathering firewood and setting up camp. Soon enough the delicious smell of a savory beef stew began wafting from the little campsite.

As the meal was cooking Gilan coached Alyx in the basic skills she would need to pass her 'exam.' She was surprisingly knowledgeable and resourceful in strategy, though Gilan never let this on. Her swordsmanship was progressing at a good, steady pace and her unseen movement was excellent for a first year apprentice. The only skill she had trouble with was her archery. She had improved a lot from their first encounter with the bow, but her archery skills left something to be desired; breaking her arm had not helped the situation either.

Gilan could see his apprentice was getting frustrated with her shooting. She kept missing the plate-sized target he had set up for her to practice with. After pondering a moment the Ranger decided to give her a break and let her calm down before she gave it another try.

"Hey Alyx," he called, beckoning her over. "Why don't you give that a break for a while?"

She sighed in frustration and stalked over to her craft master, sitting down beside him and staring into the fire. "I'm not going to get this before the Gathering," she said wearily.

"We'll talk about your archery later; I need to discus something else with you."

Alyx looked at him curiously, "What would that be then?"

Gilan collected his thoughts before broaching the subject with his apprentice. "As you know we're going to the Gathering, where all the Rangers come, some of them with apprentices."

"Yes," Alyx replied, drawing out the syllables. She had no idea where the Ranger was going with this.

"And as I'm sure you know my old master, Halt, will be at the Gathering as well."

The young apprentice just looked at the Ranger and raised her eyebrow, clearly telling him to get to the point.

He continued on in a grand voice, "It has been a long standing tradition in the Ranger Corps for the graduated apprentices to, "Gilan paused here, "ah shall we say, try and catch their masters with their breeches down."

Alyx's other eyebrow rose at this. "Really," she said, clearly unimpressed. "I'm assuming you want me to help out with whatever you have planned for your poor master." Gilan noted a disapproving tone in her voice.

"Of course! We're bound to catch him this time with three people against him."

"Three?"

"Yes, Halt had another apprentice as well. Will Treaty, you learned about him in history, remember?"

Alyx nodded in affirmation; Gilan didn't bother testing her to make sure she remembered. His apprentice had a mind like a bear trap and she rarely forgot anything she had learned.

"Before I agree to do anything crazy, tell me what you have planned, then I'll decide if I want to help out with this insanity."

The Ranger's mouth quirked up at his apprentice's reply but he didn't say what he was thinking; instead outlining the basic strategy of what he called 'mission breeches.'

After Gilan had finished explaining Alyx decided her role in this whole debacle wasn't too idiotic and agreed to help with the whole plan.

Gilan slapped his leg, "Excellent! Now that that's settled let's eat!" The Ranger exclaimed cheerfully.

Alyx snorted to hide the laugh that was threatening to bubble over, "You and your appetite."

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**Hope you guys liked it!:) By the way I changed my pen name from AlyxtheDarkWanderer to The Skinny Tortilla just in case some of you were a little confused. Anyway let me know what you guys think! The next chapter we'll most likely be meeting Will and Halt :D**

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**Quotes:**

If you look like your passport picture, you probably need the trip.

**_Always _and _never_**** are two words you should always remember never to use in a sentence.**

_You know you're old if you can remember when bacon, eggs, and sunshine were good for you._


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